Once consigned to shabby "nature" stores and farmers' cooperatives, environmentally conscious foods, beverages, and fabrics have in recent years hit the mainstream with the wallop of an entire planet. Items made with all natural ingredients - which is to say, forbidding the use of artificial fertilizers, preservatives, or hormones - have sprouted on grocery store shelves and in department stores, promising their all-natural pedigree and selling their "naturalness." These products, known to their consumers as organic or green, ostensibly work to stimulate small business, as most green foods are grown or ranched by farmers working outside the agricultural conglomerates. In fact, one national chain, the Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods Market, carries organic and green foods and beverages almost exclusively. The green economy is growing, to use the pun, and growing like a weed.

Organic fashions are also experiencing a golden age, as eco-savvy consumers buy with their conscience. Eco-conscious clothes are made from alternative fibers such as hemp or from cottons not treated with pesticides or growth stimulants. The theory behind "green" clothing remains much the same as the case for organic food: it's simply healthier in the long run to keep synthetic chemicals away from the body.

There is also, it must be said, belief in a trickle down effect. Proponents of organic clothing point out a simple law of gravity, that those same chemicals used to make and dye clothes run off into soil and water, the same place where much of the food and drinking water used to feed cities begin. Moreover, they feel the use of renewable resources such as cotton actually helps to regenerate the soil, keeping the land farmable for future generations. The clothing itself is sometimes also manufactured in factories that are environmentally friendly.

As interest in eco-friendly clothing has exploded, so too have mainstream fashions designers followed suit, and this is nowhere more evident than in children's apparel. Parents eager to provide the safest and healthiest environment possible for their children are a natural target audience, and within only the past few years, no less than a half-dozen clothing designers have introduced organic clothing for children. Their appeal lies in cutting edge eco-technology that puts the clothing on a competitive level with more traditionally manufactured clothes.

The development of organic dyes has led to a wide palette available for organic clothing, making them indistinguishable in vividness or design from their synthetically colored counterparts. Some designers have even introduced animal and other kid-friendly designs and patterns into their organic ensembles, making them child-friendly as well as earth-friendly. The end result is a healthier child who comes to environmentalism as if it's "bred in the bone" - taught from their earliest days not as a deliberate choice but as a lifestyle.

The Corner Stork has a wide variety of baby gifts, clothing, and accessories, to please any discriminating taste. For a complete look at their collection - including some that are friendly to the Earth, as well - please visit our website at www.cornerstorkbabygifts.com.